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TABLE 16.4 EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING
Extemporaneous speeches are:
• Prepared
• Outlined
• Researched
• Rehearsed
• Rehearsed
• Conversational
• Flexible
Advantages of extemporaneous speeches:
• Personal connection with audience
• Adapt to time limits
• Flexibility with audience feedback
Unique features of extemporaneous speeches:
• You can deliver it any number of times and it won't come out exactly the same way each time.
• You, the presenter, have control over the presentation situation.
For example, many people find they speak more quickly when they are nervous, as one might be in a public speaking situation. Speaking too quickly can distract from your message because your articulation can suffer and audience comprehension can be diminished if you don't allow time to let the ideas sink in. Eliminating such a distraction from your delivery allows the audience to focus on the message.
It is important to identify and eliminate common distractions, including those associated with your appearance, gestures or repetitive actions, and posture (videotaping and peer critiques work wonders!). A busy combination of colors, an open fly, too much makeup and jewelry, and an unkempt appearance can all distract the audience from your message. Playing with your pen and jingling the change in your pocket may not be noticeable to you, but they are to the audience. Even a stiff posture with no movement can call attention to itself.
It's helpful to think about network news broadcasters. While there may be a few exceptions, we generally don't know where they're from by their dialects; we don't recall specific outfits; and we don't remember if they used any special posture or gestures. Broadcasters avoid distractions so that you, the audience, can focus on the news story. And that is the goal in presentational speaking. You don't have to try to be John F. Kennedy,
Page 162 Barbara Jordan, or James Earl Jones. Your job is to be yourself, to deliver your message, and to avoid distracting your audience from that message.
Using Your Voice Effectively
Most people are rather surprised when they first hear themselves on tape. "Do I really sound like that?" We don't have a good sense of how we sound to others because the structure of the ear and its vibrations interfere with how we perceive our own voices. If you don't like your voice, there isn't a whole lot you can do to change its quality. You can, however, make sure that your voice doesn't distract from the message.
Practice
Practice your presentation, or even read a passage from the newspaper, using a cassette recorder. (Don't use a video camera, because you might be distracted by your appearance and other aspects of nonverbal communication.) Listen to your tape for the following:
• Is your articulation crisp and sharp, or do you drop endings and run words together? The appropriate use of a simple -ing ending (for example, speakin' versus speaking) can make the difference between sounding competent or unprofessional.
• Is your tempo appropriate for easy listening, or do you speak too quickly or too slowly? Is your voice too loud or soft for the size of the room and the audience?
• Does your voice sound expressive? Are you demonstrating that you understand the meaning of the message, or are you speaking in a monotone, as if you're just reading or reciting something of no interest?
• Do you use vocal "fillers" that might distract from the message? Once the audience starts counting your "ums," you're in trouble and probably don't even realize it.
Your own self-analysis, or that of a close friend or coworker, can help you identify one or two areas to improve before your next presentation.
One way to solve a pesky delivery problem is to exaggerate the solution when you practice. Let's look at two examples:
• Speaking too quickly. If you speak too quickly and run your words together, a potential solution is to practice speaking very slowly and distinctly.
At first, make your speech agonizingly slow. Force yourself to slow down and articulate each word. As you start
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to speak more distinctly, gradually speed up to a more normal pace.
• Speaking in a monotone. If you sense that your voice is too monotone and expressionless, try emulating a dramatic actor. For a few minutes, get crazy with your message. Have some fun. Exaggerate the changes in your pitch and intonation. Then gradually calm it down and use your audience analysis information to determine what changes will improve your presentation style.
Make certain, however, that you eliminate these extreme "practice exaggerations" from your actual presentation style. We have encountered one exasperating and pretentious presentations instructor who gains attention in groups, meetings, and presentations by using overly dramatic intonations.
Not only are such exaggerations aggravating, they are also distracting and counterproductive. When you are delivering your presentation, avoid being egocentric, and pay attention to feedback from your audience. They'll know the difference between your acting a dramatic role and just being yourself.
Get rid of the ums by consciously eliminating them during casual conversations at the dinner table or with friends. By eliminating these fillers from your casual conversation you will be able to get rid of them in your business presentations.
Using Posture and Gestures to Enhance Your Message
Now it's time for you to get out that video camera or stand in front of a mirror. Deliver your presentation or do an impromptu self-introduction while watching your behaviors. A good presenter maintains eye contact with the audience, presents pleasant facial expressions, has an upright but not stiff posture, and uses gestures to emphasize points. For most business presentations, your audience is relatively small, and you don't need the dramatic gestures and movement that would be appropriate on a stage in front of thousands. To enhance your message, use these two guides:
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• Appear natural and relaxed, as you would in most business discussions. Remember, it's okay to smile.
• Use nonverbal communication cues to add emphasis to your message.
Because your gestures, posture, and even voice intonations can affect the quality of your presentation, it's important to be aware of how you're projecting to your audience. The following suggestions can help you do this.
Make Eye Contact
You want to maintain eye contact with the audience by looking at one person for several seconds, then moving on to another person. Don't read from your notes, although it's okay to glance down at them occasionally.
If you try to avoid looking at your audience by looking beyond them (to the clock on the back wall, for example), people will notice and become distracted—and to you the audience will seem like an intimidating mob.
If you quickly glance around the room and do not maintain eye contact while you make your point, you're using the "scared rabbit" approach. Darting eyes make you appear to be extremely nervous.
Remember, you are under no obligation to look at everyone in the audience. If it works better for you, choose to focus on the friendliest faces, such as people who are nodding in agreement with your message.
However, don't ignore people who are starting to frown or look bored. They are giving you extremely important feedback, and you need to be aware of them before you get into questions and answers.
Use Appropriate Posture
Your posture should be professional and confident. In most situations, this means that you should stand firmly on two feet and not shift your weight from side to side or lean on a table or podium. Don't appear stiff and unnatural. Incorporate some movement into your delivery style, but don't pace or wander. You might move toward the overhead or computer in order to display visuals, or you might take a step toward your audience to emphasize a point. Use natural movements as you would when you are engaged in animated conversations.
Taking a step toward a listener who is starting to look bored (or worse, nodding off) can help that person become more attentive, and it can eliminate a major distraction to others who are trying to listen.
Page 165 Make Your Gestures Work
Like your posture, your gestures should be natural and seem like a normal extension of your body language. One effective technique is to use your hands for emphasis, to punctuate your discussion, and to refer to your visual aids. For example, to help structure three points in your presentation, hold up one, then two, then three fingers to emphasize the sequence. If the gesture feels like a natural part of your presentation, it is probably appropriate.
Avoid distracting, nervous, repetitive, and meaningless movements—for example, tapping on the podium, playing with your ring or watch or pen, jingling the keys or coins in your pocket, or stroking your beard. Speakers can generally identify their own distracting gestures after a brief encounter with a mirror or a few minutes of videotape. Again, you need to practice in order to get rid of those distractions.
Practicing Your Presentation
"Practice? Who has time to practice?" We hear that comment too often from managers, executives, and students when it comes to preparing for a presentation. Many executives feel such time pressure that they barely have time to gather their data and make a few slides before speaking.
However, if you ignore this crucial step in the preparation of your presentations, you will surely find some surprises—and may even experience some of our "presentation disasters" (see Table 16.5). Practice alleviates speech anxiety, and being prepared is a courtesy to your audience members. The people listening to you are spending their valuable time, and you need to help them use it effectively.
Often, presenters don't know how to use successful techniques for practicing their speeches. Instead, they frequently take their note cards into a conference room and review them, sometimes quietly muttering the phrases they intend to use. This is rarely helpful because it is a setting and rehearsal very far removed from the actual presentation situation.
The following guidelines can help you more effectively practice your presentation:
• Duplicate, as closely as possible, the conditions under which you will presenting. Try to practice your presentation in the room where you'll be delivering the speech. If that's not possible, be sure to stand (unless your presentation calls for you to sit) and project your voice as if you were speaking to the number of people you expect.
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